Family connection to Russian Tsar's family - Help needed please

[deejayEn]

One of the stories in my family was regarding the wife of my great'grandmother's brother, Florence Rose Ryan. She married James B Higgins in London in 1916. Her son told me that her grandmother worked as a nanny to the Russian Tsar's children. He said that she was well liked by the family and received a pension after she came back to England. He couldn't remember her name or any other details.

Recently I discovered a woman called Margueretta Eager from Ireland who was nanny to the children of the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II. Could she be the relative?

I looked into Florence Ryan's family a few years ago but gave up as I hit a brick wall. She married James Bartholomew Higgins in 1916 when she was 25. I bought her marriage certificate and it shows that her father was called Frederick Ryan and was deceased (no ocupation shown). She was 25, so born in 1891. I couldn't trace an obvious Florence Ryan with a father called Frederick on the Census.

More recently, having found Florence Higgins on the 1921 census, and later voting registers I discovered her full birth name was Florence Rose Ryan. So armed with this extra info I looked at births and saw a Florence Rose Ryan born in Clerkenwell in 1891, the only one, so it had to be her. I bought a digital copy of the birth certificate which was missing part of the image but I discoverd he father was called William, proffesion piano maker, mother's name beginning with E (full name is one of the parts that is missing) living at 18 Busaco Street, Clerkenwell in London. Exct date of birth mising from the image.

Next I looked on the 1901 census hoping to find a piano maker called William Ryan with a daughter called Florence age 9/10. I did find a piano maker called William Ryan with a wife called Eliza but not in London and no daughter Florence or Rose.

Then as Florence was born in a cenus year I decided to look up the Busaco Street address on the 1891 census and found a group of people the, one of them called Elizabeth Ryan but age 20 and single. Could she be Florence's mother or sister? But where was William?

I was stuck again but then I rememberd my earlier research and found that I had looked up a baptism of a Florence Rose Ryan from 1894 in Holborn, I checked and the parents names were William and Elizabeth and he was a cabinet maker (close to a piano maker). And the address was 18 Busaco Street. So I thought I had found it and that she was baptised at age 3. However against the baptism was written the word Private. I checked and that meant that the child was probably very ill and was baprtised at home. This was possibly true as a child called Florence Ryan died the following year age 1 in the same parish, Holborn.

So I am puzzled. My reseach so far has shown that Florence's father has two difererent names, the address of her birth was also the same as a child of the same name born 3 years later who died the following year to parents of the same name. I cant trace her parents or siblings with any certainty, let alone find a connection to the myserious nanny who supposedly worked for the Tsar.

Any help/advice would be appreciated, not just the Tsar connection but with tracing Florence's ancestors.

[mckha489]

The Florence who died age 1 in 1895 cannot be Florence Rose born 1892 unless someone completely lost the plot about age.

I wonder if more likely to be this birth

RYAN, FLORENCE       LEWIS 
GRO Reference: 1893  S Quarter in HOLBORN  Volume 01B  Page 701

[mckha489]

The cert you have has  MMN ROBERTS?

I see on the 1939 Florence Rose has dob of 6 December 1891
Can you see even a bit of the date on the image that would correlate?

Added…it doesn’t help that she seems to be the only Ryan/Roberts birth

[maddys52]

I agree that the death in 1895 is unlikely to be yours. A private baptism could be done for a number of reasons, and the child would not necessarily have died.

[aghadowey]

Recently I discovered a woman called Margueretta Eager from Ireland who was nanny to the children of the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II. Could she be the relative?

Looks like she can be ruled out.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaretta_Eagar
Death: July/Sept.1936 Margaretta Eager, age 67, Bathavon dist. 5c 521

[maddys52]

Margaretta EAGAR's does seem like an interesting life. She worked for the Tsar's family from 1898 to 1904.
https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/columnists/mary-kenny/the-fascinating-story-of-the-belfast-nurse-who-became-a-nanny-to-russias-tragic-last-royal-family/36246936.html

Just to be clear, is the family story that Florence's grandmother was the nanny?

[Jennaya]

I have in my possession a book (serialised magazines) turned into a hard cover book. It was published around the early part of the 1900s (definitely pre WWI)

In the book is a serialised story of the Russian royal family. There is mention of the English governess Miss Eager. Then there are other mentions of the children's nurse. It looks to me like there were 2 different women caring for the children. The nurse wasn't named - perhaps she is of lower status than the governess. The Tsarina is Queen Victoria's granddaughter, so I think it's very possible that the nurse was English as well.

[jorose]

From the 1916 marriage certificate, who were the witnesses?
From the birth, does it show who the informant is?

I wonder if she was illegitimately born to Elizabeth Ryan.  This would explain the later confusion in names and difficulty finding her on census (Frederick might be a foster father or stepfather's name).

[LizzieL]

Then as Florence was born in a cenus year I decided to look up the Busaco Street address on the 1891 census and found a group of people the, one of them called Elizabeth Ryan but age 20 and single. Could she be Florence's mother or sister? But where was William?

In 1901 there is a Day family at the address with an Edward C Ryan age 20 visiting them. He was b Highgate, London and is a general labourer